That’s what we are. Disappointed. With Congress…
Americans Widely Disappointed With Democrats in Congress
Majority more displeased than content with handling of seven issues — PRINCETON, NJ — Amidst a swirl of public dissatisfaction about the Iraq war, the economy, government corruption, and with President Bush more generally [… ]
Categories: Bush Administration · Congress · Democrats · Economy
Tagged: Congress, Gallup Poll, President Bush
One of the best posts I’ve seen that explains how, just because the violence is down (thanks to the huge number of U.S. troops in Iraq), the end-game still isn’t being realized. In fact, it’s not even within sight. There is no political reconciliation. And that, after all, is the goal. Isn’t it?
In recent months, there have been some encouraging trends in Iraq. Violence has been less rampant, and attacks have been less catastrophic. The trend may be temporary, and the possible result of a successful ethnic-cleansing campaign, but for right now, the daily bloodshed is not as devastating as it was up until quite recently. The White [...]
Still, we don’t want to avoid the positive solely for political reasons..
Fewer Iraq Roadside Bombs, U.S. Says
An American military official on Thursday reported a sharp decrease in the number of roadside bombs and other homemade bombs in [...]
The war funding vote is still nebulous. That could be a bad thing for senators. Especially if THIS happens…also, I’m wondering how they’ll be able to shift flight plans around. Things are booked full right about now…
Reid Threatens Sunday Senate Session for Vote on War Funding
Democratic leaders are threatening to hold senators in Washington until Sunday, unless an agreement is reached to bring up an Iraq war funding bill before [...]
But I sense that it’s not going to be a very warm Thanksgiving for the Krongard klan. Consider this a full-course summary of posts from last night…
State Dept. Inspector General Appears to Have Perjured Himself Before House Committee Yesterday
The White House is probably busy right now dusting off a Medal of Freedom — as well as complete and full pardon — for Howard “Cookie” Krongard, their inspector general at the State Dept. It appears that in Krongard’s testimony before the House Oversight and Government Reform yesterday, he made [...]
Oh, this popped up late this afternoon..
Categories: Blackwater · Bush Administration
Tagged: Krongard
This could actually be kind of fun! Kos and Karl…BFF…
Earlier this week, Newsweek formally announced that Markos Moulitsas would be a contributor to the magazine and website for the 2008 campaign. As ThinkProgress noted, the folks on the right were all in a dither passing out on their fainting couches over the liberal bias in the media and blabbity-flibberty-floo. Well, take a gander at who the other contributor will be to “balance” things out: [...]
Categories: 2008 Election · Internet
Tagged: Daily Kos, Karl Rove
Love that phrase. Procedural jujitsu. It goes to show just how strained things are between the Dems in Congress and the White House…
Dems Work to Foil White House Recess Ploys, Again
It’s not hard to imagine: while Harry Reid launches into his tryptophan-fueled nap after Thanksgiving dinner, President Bush makes a flurry of recess appointments. The Senate majority leader doesn’t want that to happen. So, Roll Call reports (sub. req.), Reid is mulling using a little procedural jujitsu. He could keep the Senate in [...]
Reid seems to be standing firm. He’s certainly not holding back on the verbage..
Reid Hits “Bully” Bush: “He Damn Sure Is Not Entitled” To A Blank Check For Iraq
Categories: Bush Administration · Congress
Tagged: Harry Reid, Pro Forma Session, Senate
The really tricky part to this story is when you read that an Iraqi commander tried to tell the U.S. troops that they were shooting at friends, but the shooting didn’t stop.
Conflicting stories on 25 killed in Iraq.
During a 12-hour fire fight north of Baghdad on Tuesday night, 25 armed Iraqis were killed. But local authorities disagree with the U.S. military over who exactly was killed, al Qaeda militants or anti-al Qaeda fighters: “U.S. forces backed by aircraft killed 25 suspected insurgents in operations targeting al Qaeda militants near the Iraqi capital Baghdad, [...]
In our ongoing attempt to provide a bit of fun around here, let’s pick on the media. Big media.
A Prankster’s Latest Victim: Katie Couric
Harry Shearer’s videos have shown Dan Rather, left, fumbling with his coat, and Katie Couric, right, joking about Mr. Rather’s subsequent YouTube appearance. Harry Shearer wears many hats, among them comedic writer, voice actor for “The Simpsons,” radio host, and Huffington Post blogger. He also enjoys sharing the private moments of the nation’s top news personalities, usually [...]
Categories: Entertainment · Television
Tagged: Bloopers, Dan Rather, Harry Shearer, Katie Couric
One year out from the 2008 vote, it seems a good time to catch up with the fine folks in Ohio, who seem to do a pretty good job of echoing the results of most elections. Keep in mind, much can happen between now and November of 2008…
Bellwether Ohio: Sharply split over the war in Iraq
They call Ohio a bellwether state for a reason: It has backed every president’s election since 1960. And in Ohio today, voters are sharply divided over the war in Iraq, with a slim majority calling the U.S.-led invasion a mistake and slightly more saying the war is not going well today. The war will likely be a pivotal issue of the 2008 election. Today, about one year out, this is what Ohio looks like: [...]
Categories: 2008 Election
Tagged: Bellwether State, Ohio
Once again, I’m turning into the “old fogey” I vowed not to become. I’ve just gotten up to speed on this whole Facebook and MySpace thing. Looks like I’m going to be dragged into it, now that pundits are predicting the death of email.
Email, 1961-2007 R.I.P… Thank God!
Slate Magazine is out with an article titled “The Death of Email.” The article points to the declining useage of email by the people who really matter. The kids. From Slate: “So, is the solution to browbeat these little rebels back in line and enforce mandatory e-mail usage? Good luck. Chances are, as usual, that the grown-ups will be the ones who are forced to adapt. Colleges have already thrown up their hands and created Facebook and MySpace pages to stay in touch with students. Since Facebook opened its gates to oldsters this [...]
Talk about your flip-flopper! Top honors to David Broder.
Earlier in the week: New York: “Will you and the media ever apply as much scrutiny to the Giuliani marriages as you have done to the single Clinton marriage?” David S. Broder: “I plan to leave both subjects alone.” In today’s WaPo: “And this was simply the confusion sown by having the first lady in charge. Put the former [...]
Categories: 2008 Election · Clinton · Giuliani
Tagged: Clinton, Giuliani
The BBC does it again. Picks up the reigns of reponsible journalism and shows us how it should be done. Tonight’s topic: Global Warming and Climate Change…
BBC Debunks Global Warming Deniers
Anyone who has paid any attention to the actual scientific literature realizes that the claims of controversy over global warming is more an invention of the right wing than a real scientific controversy. The BBC took a look at global warming skeptics and compiled a list of the top ten arguments which they make against [...]
Back on this side of the pond…
Gov’s Take Lead on Climate Change
We all know the Bush administration’s record on global warming. It’s been a strategy of denial, delay and obfuscation. Only Exxon, its well funded “skeptics” and the most “Red Meat” Republicans continue to deny that global warming is being driven by carbon emissions from human sources: automobiles, industrial plants and electrical utilities which burn fossil fuels like oil and coal. Meanwhile, even with control of the Congress back in Democratic hands, the only legislation [...]
Categories: Global Warming/Climate Change
Tagged: BBC, Climate Change, Global Warming
Well, maybe they’ll finally try to do something about gas prices. Maybe. One of the more interesting facts in this post is that the Air Force is looking at a new bomber that runs on coal. That’s right. Coal.
CNN: Pentagon is feeling enormous pain at the gas pump
The skyrocketing price of oil isn’t just a burden for American drivers at the gas pump — it’s also a potentially crippling problem for the US military, the nation’s number one energy consumer. The combined branches of the American military burn through a whopping [...]
As long as we’re on that topic, hold onto your wallets…
OPEC: Oil prices beyond our control
OPEC’s president said Thursday that “potentially dangerous” high crude prices were beyond the cartel’s control as leading members defied pressure to raise their output to help ease the burden of near 100-dollar oil. “These prices are potentially dangerous,” Mohammad al-Hamli, who is also [...]
Categories: Bush Administration · Economy · Taxes
Tagged: Coal, Gas, Oil
We’ll continue to snag a few choice posts about our homegrown presidential candidate, Mike Huckabee. As long as there are posts to be had. In other words, as long as he’s in the running.
The national political media is allowing the Giuliani campaign to spin them again. The conventional wisdom about Mike Huckabee’s emerging strength in Iowa is that the Giuliani campaign is privately thrilled at the sight of the evangelical vote being so splintered amongst Rudy’s rivals. Don’t be so sure about that. [...]
From Time magazine…
I’ll let the pictures do the talking. Here’s the graph of the RCP Avg in Iowa: Here’s Mike Huckabee’s Intrade chart over the last 30 days: Meanwhile, here’s Mitt Romney’s Intrade graph over the same [... ]
And, he’s part of the big picture polling here..
Finally, looking ahead…
It’s early to speculate. Perhaps Huckabee is even peaking too early. It’s always hard to know with these things. But the polls out of Iowa now leave little doubt that Mike Huckabee isn’t just surging or in the first tier [....]
Not to be outdone, the Mrs. is getting some attention of her own. Not particularly flattering, but…
Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition
Seriously: First Lady Janet “Rambette” Huckabee© During an afternoon tea party at the elegant governor’s mansion in the capital of South Carolina, former Arkansas first lady Janet Huckabee told CNN she is pretty handy with a grenade launcher. Huckabee, the wife of Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, said in an interview that she once shot a grenade launcher [...]
Categories: 2008 Election · Giuliani · Huckabee
Tagged: Huckabee
I just knew there had to be a counter to the Clinton Pardons Payback story. I just knew it…
A PARDON-CASH CONNECTION: IT’S OK IF YOU’RE A BUSH
The biggest story in the universe right now is that three people Bill Clinton pardoned — without raising objections — have now given money to Hillary Clinton’s campaign. Those Clintons — they’re so uniquely evil! Or maybe not: ”The George Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas, reveals its most generous patrons on [...]
Categories: Politics
Tagged: Bush, Clinton, Donations, Pardons
Photo borrowed from “Keep The Coffee Coming”
It’s becoming an almost daily thing, these reports on the economy. I’ll be happy when the arrows are pointing up, instead of down.
Just keeps getting better. Consumer prices rose a brisk 0.3 percent in October, driven by the sharpest rise in energy costs in five months, while jobless claims were higher than anticipated, government reports showed on Thursday. The Consumer Price Index, [...]
Note from the California housing scene…
….As California goes, so goes the nation?The Southern California housing market beat a fast retreat in October as the median price plunged 8% to relinquish two years of gains and sales volume slipped to a record low, data [...]
And, in summary…
Economists: Credit Turmoil To Continue
The credit crisis weighing on markets still has some time to play out and consumers may have a tough slog ahead, according to economists in the latest WSJ.com forecasting survey. But confidence in the Federal Reserve’s ability to navigate the rough economic waters remains high. When asked about the credit crisis and related market turmoil, more than half [...]
Categories: Economy
Tagged: Consumer Prices, Economy, Energy Costs, Jobless Claims
I really should have posted something about this Wednesday evening. Saw it reported on Countdown with Keith Olbermann, and intended to add it to the list. Never got around to it. So, we’ll try to stay on top of anything that changes tonight.
House approves Iraq spending bill with timelines for troop withdrawal
…Bush already promised he’d veto this bill. It’s his war. He started it. He wants all his money. And he’ll spend it however he what he wants to. That’s the way Bush had done it for six years — and he doesn’t think that should change now. We know Mitch McConnell and his GOP colleagues will do everything possible to keep the war going. The question is whether the Democrats will cave — again — or whether [...]
Categories: Bush Administration · Congress · Democrats · Iraq War · Republicans
Tagged: Countdown, Iraq Spending Bill, Iraq War, Olbermann
Perhaps I’m just getting dense in my old age, but I’ve read through this two times and I’m still not sure exactly what it says. Or means. I guess this is why I didn’t major in physics…
Surfer dude stuns physicists with theory of everything. The new theory reported today in New Scientist has been laid out in an online paper entitled “An Exceptionally Simple Theory of Everything” by Lisi, who completed his doctorate in theoretical physics in 1999 at the University of California, San Diego [...]
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: Lisi, Science, Theorectical Physics, Theory of Everything
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